Nature Happenings

•  NABA National Butterfly count.

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• Zebra Swallowtail, Tennessee's state butterfly!

 

• Except for goldfinches and late bluebirds, bird breeding and nesting season ends this month.

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• Goldfinch

 

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• Bluebird

 

• Mississippi Kites begin fledging their young.

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• Mississippi Kite

 

• Fall shorebird migration begins this month.

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• Shorebirds

• Mallards and Wood Ducks molt into their "eclipse" plumage and are unable to fly for several weeks.

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• Molting Mallard [Molting is the process of loosing last year's plumage & growing in new feathers.]

 

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• Wood Duck with eclipse plumage. [Eclipse plumage is temporary or transition plumage. Ducks are peculiar in that they loose all their flight feathers; the long, wing feathers; at once. Ducks are not able to fly during this period.]

 

• Watch local ponds for immature herons and bitterns.

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•  Immature Great Blue Heron

 

• Blackbirds begin to flock and appear at feeders.

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• Flock of Red-winged Blackbirds

 

 

• Hummingbirds begin staging south and start showing up more at feeders.

• First brood of immature hummingbirds begin to show up at nectar feeders early in the month.

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• Immature Ruby-throated Hummingbird at nectar feeder 

 

• Barn Swallow fall migration begins.

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• Barn Swallow

 

• Keep your feeders and bird baths clean and your seed fresh through hot months.

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• Bluebird

 

• Delta Aquarids Meteor shower peaks in late-July.